Questions and Answers.pdf

Offeror Questions and Answers

1. I noticed that the solicitation includes the following, please confirm if this is meant to be in this solicitation as it is for a different site (page 28 of 81).

a. The contractor is responsible for performance of ALL terms and conditions of the contract. The contractor shall provide all labor, supervision, and all other resources required to install, provide maintenance and repairs of Mobile MRI Trailer at the Minneapolis VA HealthCare System (1 Veterans Drive, Minneapolis, MN 55417) for this base year plus four (4) option contract.

A: This was a mistake and was intended for a different solicitation/contract. This has been removed from the QASP for this solicitation.

2. Transportation is to be priced in the base year but does not appear in the option years. Should we add a line for transportation in those years?

A: Yes, transportation costs should be included for the option years as well. The spreadsheet has been adjusted to include these transportation costs. See attached.

3. Confirm whether this procurement is being conducted as a Request for Quotes or a Request for Proposals for submission and evaluation purposes. SF 1449 Block 14 marks RFP, while the solicitation provisions refer to an RFQ and use offer, proposal, quote, and quotation terminology.

A: This procurement will be an RFQ, the type of solicitation has been changed.

4. Clarify the intended pricing and ordering structure. The SOW describes a firm-fixed-price contract, while the solicitation establishes an indefinite-quantity contract with a $1,000 minimum guarantee and a $2,000,000 ceiling. Please confirm whether the annual CLIN amounts should equal the aggregate evaluated values from the attached waste and supply schedules, while task or delivery orders and payment will be based on actual quantities ordered at the fixed unit rates.

A: This is a Firm-fixed-price (FFP) indefinite delivery / indefinite quantity (ID/IQ) contract. These are not mutually exclusive contract types and additional information for these types of contracts can be found at FAR 16.5. Basically, the ID/IQ is the overarching contract while the orders that are placed against the ID/IQ are FFP.

5. Confirm whether the annual CLIN amounts should equal the aggregate evaluated values from the attached waste and supply schedules, while task or delivery orders and payment will be based on actual quantities ordered at the fixed unit rates.

A: The CLINs should be the aggregate estimated amount based on the amount that will be ordered throughout the life of the contract per period of performance.

Delivery orders will be the actual amount ordered at the time of issuance.

6. Confirm how a newly required separate RCC or PRC stop, or another added or deleted BHHCS stop, will be ordered and compensated.

A: The overarching contract is an IDIQ contract and therefore subject to change either increasing or decreasing within the margins of minimum and maximum of the contract. Orders will be adjusted throughout the life of the contract for what will be needed during the period of performance. Any additions during the order’s period of performance will be executed through a bilateral modification to the order prior to execution. Additionally, the SOW has been updated to indicate that RCC is now a required recurring separate stop. See changes to the SOW highlighted and in red.

7. Offerors are instructed to price every line item, while many waste-stream lines show an estimated annual quantity of zero and the supplies schedule provides ordering increments but no estimated annual quantities. Please confirm:

a. Whether a unit price is required for every zero-quantity waste line

A: Yes, every line item will need a corresponding unit price in the event that line item is ordered against during the life of the contract.

b. Whether those lines will contribute zero dollars to the evaluated total

A: Lines with $0 should not contribute to the evaluated total.

c. What quantity or weighting the Government will use to evaluate each supplies line

A: As outlined in the SOW (pg. 24 of solicitation), supplies for hazardous waste shipment will not normally be ordered through this contract. Any supplies that are needed from the contractor for this contract will be on an as needed basis in the event supplies cannot be procured from other sources or an emergent need arises. The SOW has been adjusted to make this information more clear and the Price/Cost schedule has been prefilled with the estimated dollar amount of supplies that will be needed during the contract in order for all offeror bids to be equal in the evaluation of the supplies line item.

8. Confirm whether the estimated annual weights and trip counts are based on recent historical actuals, forecasts, or planning allowances.

A: Estimated annual weights are based on historical actuals and forecasts.

9. Provide recent shipment summaries, manifests, waste profiles, or representative inventories for Fort Meade, Hot Springs, Rapid City, and Pine Ridge so offerors can validate packaging, routing, TSDF acceptance, and pricing assumptions.

A: The BHHCS cannot provide this information. All information needed for offerors to make an accurate pricing estimate is already included in the solicitation.

10. The Contractor must perform waste determinations and classifications meeting 40 CFR 262.11 and complete waste profiles. Clarify whether the Contractor is responsible for sample collection and analytical laboratory testing needed to make or update those determinations, and whether all such testing must be included in the fixed unit prices or will be separately ordered and compensated.

A: The BHHCS shall perform all sample collection and analytical testing. This information shall be provided to the contractor for their waste determinations / classifications, and waste profiles. Therefore, testing should not be included in offeror pricing.

11. Clarify the billable-weight rule when a non-UN or non-DOT primary container must be placed into an overpack.

A: When using non-UN or Non DOT containers in an overpack the weight of these containers may be counted towards the billable weight rule.

12. Confirm whether compressed-gas cylinder lines are to be priced per pound, per cylinder, or by another unit, because the schedule describes cylinder sizes while the SOW states that waste-stream pricing will be on a per-pound basis.

A: Compressed gas cylinder lines are to be priced per pound.

13. Clarify the provision stating that BHHCS may manage wastes or supplies if a price is "35% (or less) than the price given by the Contractor."

A: The 35% pricing stipulation has been removed from the SOW. See changes highlighted in yellow and strike through red lettering.

14. Identify the intended comparison threshold, the source of the comparison price, whether the provision applies at the individual line-item level, and how any resulting reduction or diversion of orders will be administered under the IDIQ contract.

A: The 35% pricing stipulation has been removed from the SOW therefore, this question is no longer applicable to this solicitation.

15. Identify any required response or mobilization time for rare emergency waste shipments, including after-hours, weekend, weather, and regulatory-driven pickups.

Also, confirm whether emergency work will use the same trip, waste-stream, and supply rates or whether a separate emergency pricing mechanism will apply.

A: According to the SOW the contractor may be required to respond to emergency hazardous waste disposal requirements. In the event this occurs, the contractor, COR, and CO will discuss pricing and execute a modification to the contract, if necessary, prior to execution of any emergency work.

16. Offerors must identify all proposed transfer, treatment, storage, disposal, incineration, autoclaving, wastewater, and sludge-treatment facilities, including capacities and permitted waste codes. Confirm whether offerors may identify approved primary and backup facilities and whether post-award substitutions may be made with prior written Government approval without requiring a new competition.

A: Offerors shall identify the primary and backup facilities. Post award substitutions may be accepted with prior Government approval after review of any requested information regarding the substituted facility.

17. Identify the positions the Government considers key personnel for this requirement.

A: Key personnel will be identified after award to the winning offeror.

18. Confirm whether the past-performance requirement may be satisfied through complete reference information for up to three recent similar efforts, or whether separate signed letters of recommendation are required.

A: Per the solicitation the Offeror must provide up to (3) letters of recommendation/references from a firm or agency in which your company has provided the same or similar type of services and complexity described in the Statement of Work. It is the offerors discretion on what is provided to meet this requirement, recommendation or references. This information will be evaluated therefore the greatest amount of information provided is preferred.

19. The ordering clause states that orders may be issued through 08/14/3031. Please confirm that the intended end date is 08/14/2031.

A: Yes, the end date on this contract goes through 8/14/2031. Orders past this date are not required to be fulfilled except in the event that FAR Clause 52.217-8 is executed.